


Another Day, Another Donna

by LastMafagafo



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Best Friends, Fix-It of Sorts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-29
Updated: 2020-07-29
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:40:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25582252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LastMafagafo/pseuds/LastMafagafo
Summary: After losing Donna, the Doctor decides to keep traveling alone, and spare himself of the pain of losing another companion. Things go south though, when he lands in another dimension, a different one from Pete’s World. With an unwanted guest and an unexpected trip down the memory lane, the Doctor will have to find a way to bring things back to normal.
Relationships: Tenth Doctor & Donna Noble
Kudos: 11





	Another Day, Another Donna

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! So DW is not mine, and I have absolutely no rights over the source material (sadly). This is kind of a fix-it of Series 4 finale, but not quite. Well, read it and you will see!

The Doctor entered the TARDIS, running as always, laughing and ruffling his hair, feeling relieved to be safe and sound inside his beautiful ship. He leaned against the controls, trying to catch his breath, as his two hearts were beating so fast that someone could say he had a Carnival on his chest. 

“Oh, that was brilliant! The best so far! I really thought I wouldn’t manage to escape this time, but I did! All thanks to the sonic screwdriver. See, no need of all those stupid gadgets from the movies when you have a trustworthy screwdriver at hand. I always say that everything can be settled with it, well… except from wood maybe. But that’s a minor problem when I have you to slam the doors, right Donna?” 

As soon as her name slipped throw his mouth he realized his mistake. Donna wasn’t with him anymore. No more arguing about the awful amount of running, or his only two suits (and an unlucky tuxedo), or slapping him when she was angry or concerned. His best friend was gone, for her own good, and he was left alone. Another companion that he lost, another woman that he missed. He managed to drive the TARDIS back into the time vortex, all his joy of another adventure fading with the memories of his dear friend. He dragged himself to the seats nearby and looked up, wondering if he would never win in the end. The TARDIS noticed his sad expression, and tried to cheer him up. 

“No, old girl. Not now. I’m not on the mood for that,” he said, resting his elbows on his knees. 

The TARDIS tried again, and remembered him of the other companions he could still meet. There was Jack, Martha, Mickey and Sarah Jane, all still carrying on their lives and fighting to protect Earth, like the Doctor has done thousands of times in the past. 

“They are all soldiers now,” he said. “That’s my fault. I made them that way. They all look too much like me,” he said, gulping, trying to hold his tears. Davros was right about that, after all. Even Rose looked more military after being trapped on Pete’s World. All because she met him. The Doctor covered his face with his hands, wishing he could have a chance to go back in time and try again. If only he could mess up with his own timeline without creating a hole in the fabric of reality. Feeling tired and sad, he had a deep breath, before raising up and… 

“What?” he asked, spotting a woman inside his TARDIS, dressed with a black pinstripe suit and high heels. Her hair was red, like a sunset on a hot day of summer. A strange sense of deja-vu came to him. 

“Where am I?” asked the woman, turning around to face him. She looked just like Donna. 

“What?” asked the Doctor, barely believing his eyes. Have he been poisoned by some hallucinogenic gas? No, he would’ve notice. Was he drunk? No, he probably would remember drinking if that was the case. So what? 

“What the hell is this place?” she asked again, demanding. 

... 

“Merry Christmas!” 

Donna Noble was greeted by her assistant Lance as soon as she arrived in the office. That just made her more angry than she already was. Donna hated Christmas, she really did. All the cheesy Christmas songs, and the same movies on TV since the 80’s, people running to buy stuff for the double of the price to give to other people who would probably pass it on the next year, and the dreadful cold weather, with all that snow. Donna hated the cold more than anything. 

“What do I have to do today?” she asked, rispidly. 

“Not much, Ms. Noble. Everything is closed for the holidays, and most of the employees are at their homes,” he said. 

“What a waste of time! If one can’t get some vacations to somewhere hot, what is the point to get holidays?” 

“Some people like to spend the day with their families,” he said. 

“They already have the whole day tomorrow,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Did you brought my coffee?” she asked. 

“It’s here, madam,” he said, giving Donna a cup. 

“Hope you did it right this time,” she said. 

“Just as you like,” he said. 

Donna had a sip, feeling the sugary taste of coffee, caramel and chantilly. That was perfect, just the way she liked it! She knew that Lance wasn’t her biggest fan, but his coffees were, without any doubt, the best in the entire universe. 

“What about the reunion with the team?” she asked. 

“Begins in 30 minutes,” he said, smiling politely. 

“Good. Now you can go. Call me when the time for the reunion comes,” she said, dismissing him with a wave of her hand. Lance got out of her room, and she saw him mouthing a curse. She knew she wasn’t very loved by her colleagues, but since she was competent, and had the job done, they would have to stand her presence. 

As Donna turned to her computer, ready to check her emails, her eyes stopped by the portrait on her desk. There was her lovely small family, ten Christmas before. Her Gramps with those stupid reindeer antlers over his blue beanie, smiling brightly while hugging his two favorite stubborn women. Her mom was with a pink jumper, looking at the camera and showing a small smile. Just before taking the photo she was nagging him for wearing those ridiculous head accessories for the photo. Donna was there as well, smiling while wearing one of those paper crowns. That was the Christmas when Donna got the resort reservations out of town. How Donna missed those days! Her daydream was disturbed by a knock on the door. That was Lance again. 

“What?” she asked, annoyed. 

“The reunion, Ms. Noble,” he reminded her. 

“Right. Is the team already there?” she asked, and he nodded, agreeing. “Good. Now come, I’ll need you,” she said, walking past him towards the meeting room. 

The building was empty that day. Besides her team, no one from the company was there, not a single soul. She wondered if she did wrong to bring them there, but when she entered the room and saw their faces, the five idiots who worked under her, her guilty disappeared. Vanessa was like dead fish, looking at Donna with those big eyes and open mouthed, confused about everything that was happening there. Nerys was just batting her eyes to Lance, who was clearly encouraging her, Jonathan was talking with the enthusiasm of a slug, and Ruth was trying to text in secret under the table, but instead was making that painfully obvious. 

“What the heck are you all doing?” asked Donna, losing her temper. 

They all stopped and looked at her surprised. 

“I was presenting the plan for the next semester,” tried to explain Jonathan. 

“Oh, really? I thought we were all having a yoga class,” said Donna, sarcastically. “Could you all focus here? Do you know why are you working today? Because you can’t do anything right! We have only five days to january, and no plan for next year whatsoever. What do you think we…” 

“Ms. Noble. It’s Christmas. We can’t focus today,” said Ruth, with that snobbish way of talking. 

“I don’t care! Today could be flipping Easter as long as I am concerned! We have to come up with something before…” Donna started yelling, barely keeping her rage at check, when she suddenly begin to glow. Her skin felt ticklish, and somehow she started to fade. Donna screamed, scared, while all the surprised eyes of her employees stared at her, watching as Donna disappearing in front of them. Just like a magic trick, Donna found herself on a completely different place, and just some steps from her, that was a skinny man, with spiky hair, staring at her as she was the freakiest thing since black hamburgers on halloween. 

“Where am I?” she asked, trying to hide how afraid she was. “What the hell is this place?” 

“Donna?” asked the man, surprised, and slightly happy to see her. Happy? That was new! 

“Do I know you?” Donna crossed her arms, feeling more scared than before. Could someone have hired that man to kidnap her? Oh, she should've know! It looked like something Nerys would do. Maybe Ruth… But, why was her kidnapper so skinny? Seriously, she could bend him with her bare hands if she tried. Shouldn’t they send someone a bit more… hunky? 

The Doctor looked at Donna, suspicious. At first he questioned his sanity, but considering his hormones, and blood pressure, he seemed as normal as always. Then he looked at the woman, trying to spot some difference from his friend to convince himself that he mistook that ginger with Donna. He grabbed his sonic screwdriver out of his pocket and pointed at her, trying to discover something. But the readings signalized that the woman in front of him was truly Donna. Well, not exactly his Donna, something was different. Something felt odd about her. Not odd like a zygon impersonating her, but odd enough to make the Doctor uncomfortable. 

“What are you doing here?” he run in her direction. “You can’t be here! Come here, I have to be quick. We can’t let your mind explode,” he said touching her temples, and closing his eyes. The Doctor tried to clear her mind any trace of him again, just like he did the last time. Even though he hated to do that, he couldn’t let Donna die, and he would do what he had to do as many times as necessary. Only that time there was no trace of him on her brain whatsoever. Suddenly, a slap. The Doctor opened his eyes, cupping his face, to see Donna staring at him, her hand raised. 

“What do you think you are doing, you pervert?” she asked, angry. “Let me go! Now! Or I’ll call the police,” she said, showing her phone out of her trousers pocket. 

“Pockets! You have pockets now!” laughed the Doctor. It reminded her of the last time. He expected Donna to laugh as well, or make some witty remark, but she just looked at him as he was a mad man. The Doctor sighed, frustrated. Donna wasn’t meant to remember him, after all. He didn’t know why it still bugged him, since he was the one who erased her memories. The Doctor contained himself, trying to sound distant, as a stranger would sound: “Don’t worry, I’ll bring you back to your home.” 

He ran to the controls, settling the destination to Chiswick, London. He had no idea what was going on there, but he was planning to ask Wilf and Sylvia about that. They would probably help him to clarify that whole situation. Part of him was cheering for Donna to have lost his Time Lord mind over the last months, so he could give Donna her memories back. Even if that meant he had to start all over with Donna, or that she would send him to his next regeneration, he didn’t care. Just the thought of having his best friend back was making him feel hopeful again. Maybe that was his wish to have a new chance to make things right coming true? He parked the TARDIS on Chiswick, right in front of Donna’s house. His poor TARDIS was weird though, so that wasn’t the smoothest landing. Something was going on, he could feel it. 

“Here we are, Donna,” he said. 

“Where?” she asked, angrier than before. 

“Chiswick! Where else?” he asked, confused. 

“You must be kidding me, mate. What the heck are we doing on Chiswick?” 

“It’s your home. See,” he said, opening the TARDIS door. Donna looked outside, and she was at the front of her childhood house. She got out, looking around. How did she get there that fast? Then she saw, the blue phone box outside, in contrast of the huge amber room inside. What was that supposed to be? Donna put her hands on her mouth, to silence a scream. 

“It’s…” 

“Bigger on the inside, I know,” he said, smiling. 

“You are bonkers!” she said, running away. 

“Wait! Donna!” he called, but she couldn’t listen, she didn’t want to. He looked back at his TARDIS, and sensed her complaining, demanding him to follow Donna, no matter what. The TARDIS was weak, he could sense, but she was as concerned about the redhead as he was. He put his hand on her, tenderly. He could feel that something was wrong, something that he couldn’t figure out yet, but was making his poor ship suffer. And he had a feeling that it was related to Donna. The TARDIS hurried him again, reminding the Doctor that Donna was already far from them. He sighed. “I’ll come back as soon as I get everything figured out,” he promised. It was almost like the TARDIS was smiling when he left to find the companion on the loose. 

“Don’t come near me,” asked Donna, when he reached her. 

“Wait, I can explain,” he said. 

“Then do it!” she demanded, still running away. 

“That’s the TARDIS. She is just smaller on the outside,” he said. 

“You are just inventing words!” 

“I’m not! The TARDIS is my ship. It means Time And Relative Dimension In Space.” 

“And who are you supposed to be? An alien?” she asked, sarcastically. 

He looked at her, smiling, and Donna realized that it was exactly what he was. The Doctor loved to see her “I can’t believe in you” expression that moment. That was so delightfully nostalgic. 

“You are not really from space, are you?” she asked, finally stopping. 

“Don’t be daft! No one is from space.” he said, and Donna relaxed. “I’m from a planet.” 

“But not this planet?” she asked, becoming wary again. 

“Nope,” he popped the “p”, having fun. 

“No way!” she said, poking his chest. When he smiled, amused, she tried to touch him with her whole palm, but Donna wasn’t ready to find two hearts there. “You have two?” 

“Yep…” 

“No way… No wonder you are so skinny! You're an alien!” she said, searching for a place to support her while she tried to process all that information. “I don’t know the American president, if that’s what you want,” she warned. 

“What? Why would I want the American president?” he asked, confused. 

“That’s not what all the aliens want?” 

“In films!” he said. How Donna could still find all those weird references of aliens? That was quite offensive. And he missed that so much! 

“Okay, so what do you want?” she asked. 

“I just want to know what is going on here, and why you showed up at my TARDIS, again,” he gulped. 

“How am I supposed to know? You are the one who kidnapped me!” she said. 

“Oh, yeah! That again!” he rolled his eyes. “I didn’t kidnapped you, you just popped inside my TARDIS out of the blue, just like that time when you were getting married. Honestly I have no idea how that happened again. I thought that maybe it was my Time Lord brain trying to make a connection, but I couldn’t feel me in you, so…” he was slapped. “WHAT was THAT for?” 

“Don’t even think about that, mate.” 

“What?” 

“All this about me in you. That’s not happening, and if you come closer I’ll call the cops!” she said, grabbing her phone. 

“What?” The Doctor tried to understand what Donna could have misunderstood about what he said, but it took him a while to figure it out. “Oh… No! No, Donna. That’s not what I was trying to say. Wait!” he said going after her. 

“Let me go!” she yelled. 

“I’ll, as soon as I understand what is happening. I’m sorry about what I said, it sounded off, but what I was trying to say is that it happened before when you were getting married…” 

“HA! I’m not married,” she said. 

“I know. Lance was eaten by the Racnoss babies in the end.” 

“Lance?” 

“You fiancé,” he said. Don’t you remember him? You were supposed to, since you two started dating before you met me…” 

“He is not my fiancé, he is my assistant,” she said, reaching the main street, waving to the taxis. 

“He is what?” The Doctor asked, confused. How could Lance be her assistant? He looked around and saw all the Christmas decorations and people dressed with coats and scarves. “Is that Christmas?” he asked, smiling. 

“Yeah! Hey, do you have money?” she asked, to focused on her task. 

“For what?” he was still appreciating that familiar experience with Donna, so he just answered automatically. 

“Buy you a Christmas gift” she said, rolling her eyes. “What do you think, dumbo? The taxi!” 

“Oh, right!” he said, whistling. A taxi stopped for them, and Donna looked at him admired, in a good way, for the first time that day. 

Donna gave the taxi driver an address and both her and the Doctor sat on the back seat. She looked at him, surprised to see the Doctor joining her, but she said nothing to send him away. He was the one with money after all. The Doctor looked out, appreciating the view. He noticed something off, though. Weren't London buses red? 

“Why are the buses blue?” he asked. 

“How should I know? Do I look like a tourist guide for you?” asked Donna. 

“It’s been always like that?” 

“Here in Earth? Yep, always,” she said, crossing her arms. 

The Doctor looked to the road, still puzzled. He could swear they were red before. And then, something else seemed off. Why were they driving the American way? And then it came to him! No wonder the smell of everything was so different! He wasn’t in his Earth. He was in another dimension, and that was another Donna. That was why she didn’t remember him, or had a Time Lord brain. She was Donna from other world, a Donna who had never met him to begin with. He pulled the sonic screwdriver out of his pocket again, and pointed at her. 

“Oi! Stop bleeping me!” she said, angry. 

“That’s it! Oh, I’m daft! I’m so daft! Huon particles! You are full of Huon particles!” 

“What? What the heck is that?” she asked. 

“Listen, Donna, that’s important. Where were you before appearing at my TARDIS?” 

“I was at a meeting. They are probably worried sick about me! And we have so much to do yet!” 

“A meeting? You were working at Christmas?” 

Donna sighed, saying nothing. That was the only thing missing to make her day worse, being criticized by an alien man with questionable fashion sense about her way to spend her Christmas. As if her employees hateful glares weren't enough. 

“So even here you still hate Christmas...” he murmured. 

“How do you know that?” Donna looked at him, suspicious. She grabbed him by the collar and looked at his eyes. “How do you know that much about me, martian boy?” 

“I’m not martian…” he said, rolling his eyes. Even the other dimension Donna did that mistake. How could she confuse him with an ice warrior? He was way more handsome! “Donna, listen to me, I know you, but not from this dimension.” 

“What is that supposed to mean?” she asked. 

“Look, everything that you do, every decision that you make, create other dimensions. There is this dimension where I died because I’ve never knew you, another one where you became the most important woman in the universe, another where you were married and had two kids, and probably many others. I know you, but not that you. The Donna I knew was a temp, and I met her on her wedding,” he smiled. 

“I used to be a temp…” she said, remembering the past. 

“Once you and my Donna were one, but you did something here that she didn’t, and now your life is completely different than hers,” he said. Donna tried to digest all that new information and make some sense of it. She wasn't sure if she understood everything right, but the idea of having other Donnas wondering around seemed both stupid and curious. That would make a nice movie plot, though. 

“So, you are telling me that you are not only an alien, but you are also from another dimension?” 

“Yeah….” 

“You are bonkers! Get out of the cab!” she said. 

“But I’m the one with the money,” he said. 

“Oh, right… Fine, so stay here, but get lost when we get there,” she said. 

“And where are we going exactly? You never told me,” he said. 

“To my work. I have to finish that meeting!” she replied, nervous. “That reminds me I need to call Lance,” she said, getting her phone. 

“Oh, right! Your ASSISTANT Lance, right?” 

“Yeah...” said Donna, seriously questioning herself what could be the problem with that guy. 

The Doctor slided on the seat to get closer to Donna. 

“Donna, had Lance brought you coffee every morning?” asked the Doctor, a bit desperate. 

“Yeah, that’s part of his job,” she said. “Why?” 

“Nothing…” said the Doctor, feeling that everything was suddenly much more familiar than he expected. He had a feeling that assistant Lance wasn’t that different from the fiancé. And if he was right, he would also find a big red spider on the basement. 

The taxi parked in front of H.C. Clements, and the Doctor payed him, feeling proud of himself to carry some money in his suits since meeting his dimension Donna. The driver wished them a Merry Christmas and drove away. 

“H.C. Clements? Do you work on H.C. Clements?” he asked. 

“Head of Human Resources, why?” she asked. 

“Ow, Donna Noble! You are so important!” he said, smiling brightly. He seemed proud of her, and she let a smile slip. No one, besides her Gramps and her dad, had ever be proud of her. 

“Stop it!” she said, entering the building. With large steps, Donna walked to her room, determined to resume her meeting as soon as she could. The Doctor followed her, being suspiciously quiet. For a guy who couldn’t keep his gob shut from the moment where they met, he had not spoken much since they got into the building. Donna wondered why. But she didn’t have much time to think about his silent, Lance was already waiting for her. 

“Ms. Noble, is everything okay? Where were you?” he asked. 

“I had a small problem. Don’t worry about that,” she said, brushing him off. 

“Who is this guy?” he asked, whispering. 

“Oh, this is the Doctor. He gave me a lift. You should’ve pay him,” she said. 

“Hello,” the Doctor waved, while observing other dimension Lance. He seemed subservient and a bit spineless, just like the one he knew before. It could make sense, since Donna was his boss, but still, he was quite concerned about all the similarities. 

“Where are the others?” asked Donna. 

“They went home. It’s already midday on Christmas, and…” 

“They went home!” said Donna, on a passive-aggressive voice tone, turning to her assistant. Lance gulped. “And who let them?” 

“Ms. Noble, I’m sorry. I thought that you were going to…” he tried to explain himself. 

“Forget it,” she said, a hand on her head. "Now there is nothing I could do, is it? Just get off." 

“What?” asked Lance. 

“You can go home,” she said. 

“Are… Are you firing me?” he asked, desperate. 

“Don’t be stupid! I’m telling you to go home, spend the Christmas with your family or something.” Lance stood there, confused. “What? Do you want to spend Christmas with me?” she asked. 

“Oh no, I mean…” 

“Go. See you on Monday. But it’s better you be waiting for me with caramel latte when I arrive,” she said. 

“Thank you, Ms. Noble. Merry Christmas!” he said, walking away before Donna could change her mind. Donna rolled her eyes, turning her attention to the Doctor again. 

“Well, that was useless... Sorry about that, Spaceman,” she got her purse and grabbed a note. “Here, thank you for the lift,” she said, smiling, while sitting on her computer again. Her team must’ve left for the holidays, but she was still planning to work for the rest of the day. 

The Doctor sat on the armchair in front of her desk, surprising Donna. Haven’t he noticed that she wanted to work alone and concentrate? Why he was still there? Was he waiting for more money or something? 

“What the heck are you doing? Didn’t I...” she started, complaining. 

“Donna, I’m sorry, but I think Lance was poisoning you,” he said, cutting her. 

“What? Poisoning? That’s ridiculous! I mean, I could believe if you said he was spitting on my coffee, but poisoning me? That’s nonsense!” 

“No, listen. Remembered when I said you had Huon particles in you? Well, that happened with the other you, the Donna I knew on my dimension. She appeared in the middle of my TARDIS just the way you did. And do you know how she got the Huon particles? Her fiancé, he had been poisoning her for the previous six months, pouring some drops on her coffee every single day. And do you know who was her fiancé?” 

“Lance!” said Donna, getting as white as paper. 

“Bingo!” said the Doctor, smiling. 

“That flying b@zT@r)! I knew that was something off about it! Crazy maniac! He is SO fired now! He will see, I’m gonna end his whole career!” cursed Donna, getting more than angry. She was furious! She so wanted to kill Lance! 

“Better calm yourself down, Donna. If this universe is anything like mine, that is someone bigger behind him,” he said, serious. 

“Bigger? Like what? A mobster?” 

“No! Much worse than that.” 

“Worse than that?” Donna felt suddenly very scared. The Doctor realized that. Just like his Donna, that one had the same lost gaze in her eyes. He hold her hand, squishing it gently. 

“Don’t worry, Donna. I’ll protect you, no matter what,” he said, serious. That was a promise. He would do anything to make sure Donna was safe, no matter which dimension she belonged to. 

She looked at him, and smiled. She was still scared, but there was something about that alien guy who made her trust him, no matter who many crazy stuff he threw on her. 

“Come on, we have a giant spider to defeat! Allons-y!” he said, grabbing her hand. 

“A what?” 

He didn’t answer, and Donna didn’t ask anymore. She just followed him, as he entered the lift. Just like it happened in his dimension, there was a secret floor there. The Doctor sonic the buttons to allow it to go down, and watched Donna surprised eyes as they invaded the long corridors under the building. 

“Okay, so segways,” he said, looking around. 

“What?” she asked. 

“You know, those things the bodyguards always rides on fancy malls,” he said. Donna was still clueless. “No segways here? Oh, that’s a pity! I’ve always liked to drive segways with you. Well, not you. The other you” he said, smiling. “Well, I guess we will have to do it the old way.” 

“What is the old way?” 

“Run!” he said, excited. Donna followed him, also smiling a bit. There really was something about him that make her feel like a little girl again. 

“How am I? The other dimension me…” she asked, curious. 

His eyes lightened up, and he smiled. 

“You are brilliant! To start, you are cleaver. You always get the small things that I let slide, like that time when you discovered the numbers on the walls were dates, not serial numbers. You are also bold, even when you are afraid. That was one time when you managed to escape a Sontaran ship, all by yourself. I kinda helped through the phone, but you did the hard job. That was brilliant! And you are so kind with people you barely know. And you understand me… sometimes even better than I do myself,” he said, almost crying. 

“You like her a lot, don’t you?” asked Donna, sad to be so different than the other her. 

“She is my best friend,” he smiled, full of tenderness. 

“Where is the other me?” she asked, a bit afraid to know the answer. 

“She is safe. She is back with her family now, her mother and Gramps.” 

“Oh, right...” said Donna, feeling envy of the other dimension her. "So she left you for good?" 

“She had to. That’s not her fault. I know that she would stay with me to the end, but that wasn’t supposed to be. I guess the universe wants me alone,” he said, looking old and sad. 

“That’s ridiculous! No one should be alone,” she said, feeling her words reflect herself. She was also so alone, for so long! “I was thinking… Maybe, after all of this, I could…” 

She was interrupted by the Doctor, who put a finger on his lips and signed her to hide behind a door. She nodded, doing as he asked, and he whispered “Stay here, it could be dangerous.” She agreed, doing as he told her. He entered a room full of cylinders with a weird liquid inside. Donna saw him smiling and putting his hands on his pockets. He looked cool from where Donna was, and she suspected he was doing that on purpose. Show off! 

“Racnoss Empress! I know that’s you!” he yelled, looking up. 

Suddenly, a wall lifted and a whole new room appeared behind that, with different floors, and random windows. There were also an army of robots pointing their guns at the Doctor. Donna gulped, scarred, but the Doctor kept his cool. He even smiled! She thought that, or he was an impressive brave man, or a spectacularly crazy one. 

“Racnoss?” a voice echoed in the ceiling, followed by a laugh. The Doctor was confused, but he tried to keep that to himself. “Do you really thing all that could be done by a Racnoss?” 

“Who are you?” asked the Doctor. 

“I’m Malae, the king of Mantanaes! The last of my species!” 

“That’s new,” said the Doctor, getting excited. “Where are you, Malae? I don’t like to talk to thin air.” 

“Interesting… You appear to have no fear,” said Malae, whose voice seemed closer and closer to where they were. Donna could hear a weird sound, almost like an insect noise. Suddenly, from one of the big windows above them all, appeared a green creature. It had big bulging eyes, was green all over, with big front legs that looked like it was praying, what was scary as hell. Donna was astonished. That was a heck of a big insect! Almost like a giant mantis, wearing an silver armor and looking way more terrifying. 

“Oh, here you are! Nice to meet you. I wasn’t really expecting to meet a Mantanae, specially here, but I guess that’s how things ended up being. Look at you! The last one, right? Oh, that’s amazing!” said the Doctor, not even a bit scared. Actually, he seemed enthused with the meeting, like a kid with a new toy. 

“Funny little man, you are!” said Malae. “Who are you?” 

“I am the Doctor,” he said, his hands still on his pockets. 

“Doctor?” asked Malae, trying to make sense of the name. 

“So, just one thing, just this one tiny little question: What do you want with Donna?” 

“Oh, so you know about the female?” asked Malae, sounding like he was amused. 

“Yeah, I do! But again, what do you want with her?” repeated the Doctor, not was kind as the last time. 

“That’s simple: I want to make her my queen,” he said, surprising both Donna and the Doctor. She gulped, disgusted. 

“Sorry, what?” asked the Doctor. 

“The female with red hair is the only one worthy to carry my descendants, and restore my race! The red marks the nobility of her blood!” said the giant mantis. 

“You can really say that she is… Well... Noble,” said the Doctor, smiling of his cheeky remark. 

Donna rolled her eyes. The alien mantis was planning to marry her, and the first thing that the Doctor decided to do was a bad pun. Oh, she was going to slap him again when all of that was over. 

“Did you consult her in that matter?” asked the Doctor. “Because I think she might be not too thrilled about that plan.” 

“Why should I? She is just a female! And she should be proud to be chosen to carry my child.” 

Hearing that was the final straw. Donna couldn’t stay silent, watching those two man (or whatever they were) discussing her love life as she had nothing to say about that. 

“Oi! Better stop right there, Mr. Mantis! I’m not looking for a husband, thank you very much, so you better find yourself another wife,” she said. 

“Donna, what are you doing? I told you to wait for me right there,” said the Doctor, through his teeths. 

“And watch you two discuss my love life for me? Not happening, Spaceman” she said, crossing her arms. 

“There she is, my lovely bride. And she is also feisty! It just gets better and better,” said Malae, raising his arms. Donna got mad, and advanced to the King, forgetting about her previous fear. The Doctor stopped her, raising his arm. 

“Just another question, if you don’t mind, why the Huon particles?” asked the Doctor. 

“That’s the only way her tiny body can bare my children,” he said. 

“BARING YOUR CHILDREN? You must be kidding!” said Donna, waving her hands. She did it a lot when she was angry. Then she looked at Malae, pointing her finger: “I’m gonna tell you that again, I’m not marrying you, mate.” 

“Actually, that’s more likely she will kill you,” said the Doctor, holding at Donna, to protect the poor Mantanae King. “You really don’t want to be slapped by her.” Donna looked at the Doctor annoyed. That wasn’t time to be funny. 

“There is no problem in that,” said the king. “It’s expected for the female to kill the male after impregnating her,” he said, and Donna almost throw up. 

“Oh, you are sick!” she said. “Completely bonkers!” 

“Listen, Malae. I understand you, but as you can see Donna is not very happy to this arrangement, besides, Huon particles can be deadly in a human body. So, why don't you forget about her, and I help you to find another bride?” 

“There is nothing you can do, Doctor. It has already being settled with her guardian,” said Malae. 

“My what?” asked Donna, confused. 

“Come here, Lance. Tell her what we agreed on,” said Malae. 

Lance came from the side, his hands on his pockets and a malicious grin. Donna had never seen her assistant like that, not in the years they worked together on H.C. Clements. That malicious glare he send her, made Donna shiver. Who was that man that she couldn't recognize anymore? 

“Lance, what is going on?” she asked. 

“Nothing, Ms. Noble. I just wanted to help you. I thought that you liked so much to boss people around, to give stupid orders, and to feel so important, that there would be nothing better than become a real queen. I even found a king to you! And he also wants children, so you can’t complain about him being afraid of commitment,” said Lance. “I found you your perfect fiancé,” said Lance, laughing. 

“Lance, are you crazy? He is an alien mantis! How could I marry an alien mantis? No offence… There must be laws against it,” she said. 

“Ms. Noble, you are so ungrateful! Nothing that I do to you is good enough!” he said, scaring Donna. Was he mad? 

“I should’ve fired you ages ago, Lance!” she yelled. 

“I wish you had!” he said. “At least I didn’t have to live through hell in your hands!” 

The Doctor stood in front of Donna, in a protective way. He also wasn’t liking where that whole situation was going. 

“Listen, Your Majesty. This man can’t answer for Donna. Actually, that’s quite the opposite. I’m afraid that you might have been fooled,” said the Doctor. 

“What? Fooled?” asked Malae, confused. “Explain, Mr. Bennett.” 

“Don’t listen to them. Donna is yours to take. You can get her!” said Lance. 

“No! Listen, King Malae. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, but you can’t have Donna.” 

“Why not?” asked the monarch. 

“Because I don’t want to!” she said. 

“That doesn’t make any difference,” said the King. 

“Oi! It’s my marriage too! And I’m not marrying you! You would have to kill me first” she said. 

Malae lost his patience, and went to grab her himself. Donna hid herself behind the Doctor. “Help me, please!" she asked, scared. 

“I get that,” whispered the Doctor, before turning to Malae and speaking loudly: “She can’t marry you, Your Majesty, because she already is my wife,” said the Doctor. 

“Am I what?” she asked. “I thought you were supposed to help me!” 

“Shhhh…” he told her. 

“Don’t you dare shush me! I have no idea how it worked with the other Donna, but I’m not being silenced by you, okay?” she said. 

“I know, sorry. But we can discuss that after we solve this,” he said. 

“What? You are her husband?” asked the Malae, looking at Lance. “You never told me anything about a husband!” 

“That’s a lie! She is not married! No one could stand her” said Lance. 

That hurt Donna a little, but she didn’t let it show. Her life was at risk there. 

“Yes, I am! Me and the Doctor, we are married. Completely married,” she said, trying to sound convincing. 

“Have you tricked me, Mr. Bennett?” asked Malae, turning against Lance. 

“What? No! She is lying! She just met this man today!” he said. 

“How dare you! We are together for…” started Donna. 

“Three years! Since our marriage on Chiswick New Chappell” said the Doctor. 

“Exactly! That was a really lovely day, wasn’t it, darling?” she asked, smiling, and he did the same. The plan seemed to be working. 

“Best Christmas of my life,” he said, smiling. 

“Three years today!” she said, laughing. 

“How dare you promise me a female that already belongs to other?” asked Malae, walking to Lance. 

“No! I didn’t! She is not married! I can prove it!” said Lance, desperate. 

“Enough of this! You will pay for your treason!” 

Malae grabbed Lance by the waist, and before anyone could do anything to stop him, he devoured Lance completely. Donna hide her face on the Doctor’s chest, trying not to see her assistant’s ill fate. The Doctor, as well, also turned his face away, incapable to do anything to help the poor human. 

“You didn’t have to do that! We could have solved this another way!” said the Doctor, angry. 

“That’s the Mantanae’s laws, Doctor. The man sold me an unavailable woman, so he should pay for his crime,” said Malae. “I’m sorry to try to get your woman. I wouldn’t have given her the particles if I knew,” he said. 

The Doctor nodded, trying to forget about Lance being devoured just some seconds before. “What are you planning to do now?” he asked, cautiously. If Malae wanted to kidnap another woman he wouldn’t let him. 

“Nothing. I don’t have much time left. A Mantanae’s life is short, Doctor. Because of that man’s lie, I don’t have another chance. I’m the last of my own, and I failed to find a partner. I won’t live longer than today,” he said, and Donna almost felt bad for him. No wonder the guy was so desperate for her to marry him. Not that Donna was willing to be his wife to make things right. “Here,” Malae said rubbing his arms against each other and taking the Huon particles off Donna. “Your woman is free again.” 

“Doctor, isn’t there something you could do?” asked Donna, feeling bad about the guy. 

“Malae, I could help you. Maybe we could find someone for you in another part of the galaxy. Have you ever tried Langanten 4?” asked the Doctor. 

“Don’t bother,” smiled Malae. “I’m resigned. Let the Mantanae’s die with me. But please, Doctor and wife, remember us. Don’t let my race be erased from the universe,” he said. 

“We won’t,” promised Donna. The Doctor smiled, placing a hand on her shoulders to give her support. Donna stood there for at least two more hours, till Malae was dead. The Doctor didn’t complain, he just stood by her side, listening to Malae’s stories about his people. Watching how the other Donna kept company to the alien who was trying to marry her just a few hours before made the Doctor remember the old times. How he missed Donna! But Donna was better off with her family. And that woman wasn’t his Donna either. The Doctor wondered if, when his time would come, someone as kind as Donna would be willing to stay with him. He grabbed her hand, taking Donna out of there. 

“That was the most terrible thing I’ve ever seen,” she said, when the lift’s doors opened to the main hall. 

“I’m sorry, Donna. Things didn’t went quite as I was expecting them to be. You see, I was hoping for a giant spider, not a giant mantis,” he said. “And the spider was more the type of “feed my kids” than “bare my kids”. 

“Did the other Lance survived, at least?” she asked. 

“No…” he said. 

“I see… Looks like I’ll have to find another assistant on Monday,” she said, clearly sad. 

“I guess so,” he said, noticing her tears falling down. “Are you okay?” 

“Yeah… It’s just… too much for a single Christmas,” she said. 

He nodded. 

“Come, I’ll accompany you to your home,” he said. 

“I’ll just grab my things first,” she said, and the Doctor remembered that everything started there, with Donna going to work. He looked around, and sighed. At least that time he didn’t drained the Thames or caused a genocide by his own hands. Donna didn’t took long to join the Doctor again. They called for another taxi, that time, Donna was willing to pay. She told the driver her current address. 

“Aren’t you coming to Chiswick?” asked the Doctor. 

“Oh… Right! I forgot about that,” she said, giving the driver the address to Chiswick. His ship who was bigger on the inside was still there, waiting for its owner. 

“Is that always like that with you? Aliens and other dimensions?” she asked, her voice low and pensive. 

“Not much the other dimension part, even if it seems to be happening way more nowadays than it used to. But the aliens part is. I always travel with the TARDIS to other planets. Other times too,” he confessed. 

“Like a time machine?” she asked, surprised. 

“Yep,” he said, smiling. He always liked to watch his companions reactions to that part. Even though that Donna wasn’t exactly his companion. 

“And it always involve that much danger?” 

“Yeah… Sometimes even more,” he said, ashamed. Donna just nodded. 

The rest of their trip was quiet, since Donna’s thoughts were keeping her distracted, and the Doctor decided to give her some space after watching all that. Still, he kept an eye on her, concerned. 

The taxi left them in front of the TARDIS, and the Doctor waited for Donna to pay the driver. Again, there were just the two of them, another deja-vu from a far away Christmas. 

“Thank you,” she said, smiling. “I didn’t tell you earlier, but I’m really thankful for you saving my life there.” 

“You don’t have to thank me. That was more of a team work,” he winked. 

“So, you are going back to your dimension?” 

“Yeah. I can’t stay here longer. The TARDIS couldn’t handle that.” 

“Oh, right... Well, besides that “Mantis king” wife story, and Lance being a backstabbing arse, that was… nice?” she said. 

“Yeah… Thank you,” he said, smiling sadly. 

“For what?” 

“Letting me have at least one more adventure with my best friend,” he said. “I guess that’s it. Be magnificent, Donna Noble!” he said, waving. The Doctor closed the door and looked up, feeling the TARDIS new complaints about leaving Donna there again. But what he was supposed to do? Kidnap the other dimension Donna just because he missed his best friend? He sighed, ignoring his stubborn ship. 

“Doctor! Wait! Doctor!” called Donna’s voice, startling him. Just like Donna the bride, the businesswoman Donna really had a talent to yell. He smiled, opening the TARDIS door. 

“Blimey! How can you be so loud even here?” he asked, playfully. 

“Take me with you,” she asked, her eyes begging him, like a sad puppy. 

That he didn’t expect. He remembered pretty well how Donna refused him the first time they met. He remembered how she was too scared to even think about his offer, as she dismissed his proposal quite fast. But that Donna was different. She reminded him of when he met his Donna again, on Adipose Industries, shoving a hatbox in his arm, and inviting herself to the TARDIS. 

“What?” he asked, trying to make sure he listened her right. 

“Please, take me with you. To travel on this box, and learn the things the other Donna learned,” she said. 

“I’m so sorry, Donna, but…” 

“I know I’m not your Donna, but I promise that I’ll do my best. I’ll learn everything about space if you want.” 

“I… I can’t, Donna” he said, feeling terrible to deny her. 

“Oh, right… What was I thinking? That would be weird for you, right?” she asked, disappointed and sad. “Forget I asked,” she said, coming back to her cold and distant voice tone. The Doctor had a sudden urge to hug her, but contained himself, that would only make things worse. 

“Donna, of course I want you to come with me! But, if you do, you wouldn’t be able to see your family anymore. For them you would be dead as well. I can’t let you do that” he said. 

“What family, Spaceman?” she asked, confused. 

“Your mom and your Gramps,” he pointed at the house on the corner. 

“They are not here anymore, Doctor. I’m alone,” she said. 

“Alone?” he asked. That was his time to be confused. 

“They died, ten years ago. That’s why I was working on a holiday, I have no one to be with today.” 

“Died?” The Doctor remembered of Wilf and Sylvia. He couldn’t imagine Donna without them. No wonder the other dimension Donna had that something familiar on her eyes. She was alone, just like him. His hearts shrunk for her. 

“That was when the stars disappeared and the pepperpot aliens came. Gramps tried to stop them with a paint gun, and my mom followed him. I was supposed to hit it from behind, but that thing killed him and mom before I could destroy it. Since then, that’s just me” she said. 

“It’s been ten years?” he asked, surprised. 

“Yeah,” she said, sighing. “I have nothing else to lose. Please, take me with you” 

“Donna, if we go, we will never come back to your dimension, and we will never be able to come near the twenty-first century. Is that really what you want?” 

“We have the whole time and space to explore, right? Why not?” she said, shrugging. 

“Welcome onboard, Donna Noble!” he said, opening his arms like a ringmaster. 

“Wait, are you serious? Are you letting me in?” she asked. 

“Not that you really needed any invitation the first time,” he said, and Donna hit him gently in the arm. 

“I promise I’ll do my best to be your… how do you call that? Traveling companion? Buddy? Anyway... I’ll be the best traveling buddy you’ve ever had!” she asked. 

“Oh, don’t worry about that! You gonna be just fine, Donna Noble! Come on, go search to your room!” he said. 

“I have a room?” she asked. 

“Of course you have! Go find it,” he said. 

Donna looked around and a door inside the TARDIS opened to her. She checked with the Doctor, who smiled, nodding. The redhead giggled, excited, as she entered that door. “Oh My God! This is bonkers!” he heard her screaming, happy, astonished, maybe everything altogether. He smiled, deciding to let her explore the TARDIS by herself. The Doctor closed the door with a snap, walking to the controls, a smile on his lips. He managed to drive the old girl back to their original dimension, right on the time vortex. 

“That was you, wasn’t that? You brought me to another dimension just to meet Donna again, didn’t you?” he asked to his ship, as he crossed his arms, pretending to be angry, but being completely unsuccessful. “That was wrong! You know the consequences!” he said, placing a hand on the controls. 

The TARDIS was too happy to feel guilty, and since she was as cocky as her lovely thief, she just expressed how proud she was of herself. 

The Doctor wanted to reprimand her, as a good Time Lord should do, but he didn’t. He had never been the best Time Lord in Gallifrey, to begin with. So, instead, he pet his ship tenderly. 

“Thank you… To give me another chance.” 

The ship answered with the equivalent of a “You’re welcome” that had something that reminded him of Donna’s way to talk. Oh, God! He almost forgot how Donna started to rub on the TARDIS. Now that he had another Donna on board, his old girl wasn’t holding back the sass anymore. 

“I’m sold!” said Donna, coming back. “This place is better than Willy Wonka’s Factory! I could spent the rest of my life just exploring all of those rooms,” she said, gesturing everywhere with her hands. 

“Maybe later, but now the universe is waiting for us! Ready to explore another dimension?” he asked, that maniac grin on his face. 

“Sign me in, Spaceman!” she said, smiling brightly. 

“Allons-y!” he said, pulling the levers and pressing the buttons. Finally the universe seemed right again. Doctor and Donna back on the TARDIS, through the whole time and space.

**Author's Note:**

> If you got so far to read this note, I hope that you enjoyed the fic. Yeah... I guess I went to RTD school of fix-the-sad-ending-with-a-clone-from-another-dimension, but hey, if the Doctor can do it, Donna can do it as well! Just so you know, I'm not a Wilf hater (or even a Sylvia hater), quite the opposite, actually (Wilf haters must be Daleks, for sure). But I can't see Donna saying goodbye to her family forever to travel with the Doctor in any possible dimension, so I had to kill them (Please, don't get mad at me, fellow whovians!) Leave me cookies if you can, but if you can't, I'm accepting kudos and comments ;)


End file.
